.Climate change is a change in the statistical distribution of weather over periods of time that range from decades to millions of years.^(November 2009) There is near consensus among the scientific community that CO2 emissions are causing climate change, including increased temperature, precipitation, and variability in weather.

Climate Change Predicted to Affect Mortality in Rural India More Than the United States - Population Reference Bureau19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.prb.org [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

^A Change in Extreme Weather Events A shift in global climate could bring about a change in the frequency and intensity of drought in already drought-prone regions.

.It can be a change in the average weather or a change in the distribution of weather events around an average (for example, greater or fewer extreme weather events).^Climate Change & Extreme Events 21.

.It can be caused by recurring, often cyclical climate patterns such as El Niño-Southern Oscillation, or come in the form of more singular events such as the Dust Bowl.^Climate is of course inextricably linked to patterns of land cover and land-use, particularly in a semi-arid region of such variable topography as the Colorado Plateau.

Climate as an Agent of Biotic Change on the Colorado Plateau19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.cpluhna.nau.edu [Source type: Academic]

^Global Climate Change Fact Sheet Series: KS4 & A 102 ACE Information Programme aric The formation of El Niño is linked with the cycling of a Pacific Ocean circulation pattern known as the El Niño Southern Oscillation or ENSO. In a normal year, low atmospheric pressure develops over northern Australia and Indonesia, with an anticyclone or high pressure over the equatorial Pacific.

.In recent usage, especially in the context of environmental policy, climate change usually refers to changes in modern climate.^If climate change were a small house fire, current policy in the European Union and the United Kingdom would ensure that it would destroy not just the house but the entire suburb.

Climate as an Agent of Biotic Change on the Colorado Plateau19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.cpluhna.nau.edu [Source type: Academic]

.For information on temperature measurements over various periods, and the data sources available, see temperature record.^Higher temperatures increase the evaporation rate, thus reducing the level of moisture available for plant growth, although other climatic variables are involved.

^Instrumental records of temperature and other climatic variables span only a tiny fraction of the Earth's climatic history, and so provide an inadequate perspective on climatic variation and the evolution of the climate today and in the future.

.Some parts of the climate system, such as the oceans and ice caps, respond slowly in reaction to climate forcing because of their large mass.^Some evidence suggests that the cause may be found within the natural climate system, for example a change to the energy transport of the ocean due to a reduction of northward ocean circulation.

.Therefore, the climate system can take centuries or longer to fully respond to new external forcings.^Finally, such GCMs can take account of the time delay between changes in the atmosphere and changes in the climate as a result of the climate system's background inertia.

Plate tectonics

.Over the course of millions of years, the motion of tectonic plates reconfigures global land and ocean areas and generates topography.^The Geosphere Variations in global climate over hundreds of millions of years are due to changes within the interior of the Earth.

^Surface Temperatures Variations Combined land and ocean temperatures analyses indicate that during the last decade globally averaged surface temperatures have been higher than in any decade in the past 140 years.

^Global Climate Change Fact Sheet Series: KS4 & A 102 ACE Information Programme aric The formation of El Niño is linked with the cycling of a Pacific Ocean circulation pattern known as the El Niño Southern Oscillation or ENSO. In a normal year, low atmospheric pressure develops over northern Australia and Indonesia, with an anticyclone or high pressure over the equatorial Pacific.

.The position of the continents determines the geometry of the oceans and therefore influences patterns of ocean circulation.^Impacts of Changing Ocean Circulation Patterns The oceans store an immense amount of heat energy, and consequently play a crucial role in the regulation of climatic patterns.

.The locations of the seas are important in controlling the transfer of heat and moisture across the globe, and therefore, in determining global climate.^The cryosphere plays another important role in the regulation of the global climate.

.A recent example of tectonic control on ocean circulation is the formation of the Isthmus of Panama about 5 million years ago, which shut off direct mixing between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.^But hey, God said the world was made 6000 years ago so let's not worry about what pumping pollution into the air will do to us.

.This strongly affected the ocean dynamics of what is now the Gulf Stream and may have led to Northern Hemisphere ice cover.^At present, northern-western Europe, including the UK, is warmed by heat carried polewards by the Gulf Stream.

[3][4].Earlier, during the Carboniferous period, plate tectonics may have triggered the large-scale storage of carbon and increased glaciation.^During the last period of glacial retreat, sustained, globally-averaged warming of a few degrees occurred over thousands of years.

[5].Geologic evidence points to a "megamonsoonal" circulation pattern during the time of the supercontinentPangaea, and climate modeling suggests that the existence of the supercontinent was conducive to the establishment of monsoons.^Some evidence suggests that the cause may be found within the natural climate system, for example a change to the energy transport of the ocean due to a reduction of northward ocean circulation.

^The effects of desertification are not necessarily restricted to local communities, but may influence populations world-wide as the climatic effects of desertification enhance man-made causes of global warming.

The existence of mountains (as a product of plate tectonics through mountain-building) can cause orographic precipitation. .Humidity generally decreases and diurnal temperature swings generally increase with increasing elevation.^The resulting decrease in local atmospheric humidity and increase in surface albedo (reflectivity of sunlight) has the potential to further reduce the regional precipitation.

.Mean temperature and the length of the growing season also decrease with increasing elevation.^The length of the growing season for grasses and trees would increase by about 15 days per oC rise in mean surface temperature, an increase that could improve the viability of grassland, animal production and forestry in the uplands.

.This, along with orographic precipitation, is important for the existence of low-latitude alpine glaciers and the varied flora and fauna along at different elevations in montane ecosystems.^Ecosystem A system of interconnected habitats and their species of flora (plants) and fauna (animals), usually defined by a specific geographical area and/or climatic regime, e.g.

The size of continents is also important. .Because of the stabilizing effect of the oceans on temperature, yearly temperature variations are generally lower in coastal areas than they are inland.^That said, most models predict marked changes in land surface temperature (0.5 to 2oC increase by 2050), whilst increases in the temperature of the surface ocean are somewhat lower.

^Surface Temperatures Variations Combined land and ocean temperatures analyses indicate that during the last decade globally averaged surface temperatures have been higher than in any decade in the past 140 years.

.A larger supercontinent will therefore have more area in which climate is strongly seasonal than will several smaller continents and/or island arcs.^Even if future climate change is less severe than projected, serious impacts are expected, according to the study.

Solar output

Variations in solar activity during the last several centuries based on observations of sunspots and beryllium isotopes.

.The sun is the predominant source for energy input to the Earth.^The Energy Budget of the Atmosphere The Earth receives energy from the Sun in the form of ultra-violet and visible radiation, and emits terrestrial radiation in the form of infra-red energy.

^The Energy Budget of the Atmosphere The Earth, however, has an atmosphere, consisting mostly of nitrogen (78%), oxygen (21%) and a number of greenhouse gases, which affect the Sun-Earth energy balance.

.Both long- and short-term variations in solar intensity are known to affect global climate.^In the long-term the concept of sustainable development (development today which does not compromise the needs of future generations) will have to be implemented if the Climate Convention's ultimate objective of avoiding dangerous man-made interference with the global climate is to be achieved.

.Early in Earth's history the sun emitted only 70% as much power as it does today.^The Energy Budget of the Atmosphere The Earth receives energy from the Sun in the form of ultra-violet and visible radiation, and emits terrestrial radiation in the form of infra-red energy.

^Instrumental records of temperature and other climatic variables span only a tiny fraction of the Earth's climatic history, and so provide an inadequate perspective on climatic variation and the evolution of the climate today and in the future.

^So the history: 4.6 billions years ago, the sun’s output was lower (approx 70% of today’s levels), often referred to as the faint young sun .

Serendipity: What has software engineering got to do with climate change?19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.easterbrook.ca [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

.With the same atmospheric composition as exists today, liquid water should not have existed on Earth.^The gaseous composition of Earth's atmosphere was relatively stable from the end of the last ice age, about ten thousand years ago, until the 1800s.

.However, there is evidence for the presence of water on the early Earth, in the Hadean[7][8] and Archean[9][7] eons, leading to what is known as the faint young sun paradox.^However, undercultivation can also lead to desertification in areas where there are no longer enough people to adequately manage the land.

[10].Hypothesized solutions to this paradox include a vastly different atmosphere, with much higher concentrations of greenhouse gases than currently exist[11] Over the following approximately 4 billion years, the energy output of the sun increased and atmospheric composition changed, with the oxygenation of the atmosphere being the most notable alteration.^In fact, the 1998 atmospheric concentration of CFC-11 was lower than the concentration 5 years earlier.

The luminosity of the sun will continue to increase as it follows the main sequence. .These changes in luminosity, and the sun's ultimate death as it becomes a red giant and then a white dwarf, will have large effects on climate, with the red giant phase possibly ending life on Earth.^The "greenhouse" effect and climate change.

.Solar output also varies on shorter time scales, including the 11-year solar cycle[12] and longer-term modulations.^But other parameters, including the solar diameter, vary too, and over different time scales.

[13].The 11-year sunspot cycle produces low-latitude warming and high-latitude cooling over limited areas of statistical significance in the stratosphere with an amplitude of approximately 1.5°C. But although "variability associated with the 11-yr solar cycle has a significant influence on stratospheric temperatures.^With mid-latitude temperatures varying ~1° C per 100 kilometers of north-south travel, a 2-4° C warming corresponds to a 200-400 km poleward shift of thermal zones (Roberts, 1989).

^High CO2 explains the warmth (although in this case, the models tend to make it a little too warm at these CO2 levels).

Serendipity: What has software engineering got to do with climate change?19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.easterbrook.ca [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

...there is still no consensus on the exact magnitude and spatial structure".[14] These stratospheric variations are consistent with the idea that excess equatorial heating can drive thermal winds. .In the near-surface troposphere, there is only a small change in temperature (on the order of a tenth of a degree, and only statistically significant in limited areas underneath the peaks in stratospheric zonal wind speed) due to the 11-year solar cycle.^To place this change in climate in context, the temperature rise that brought the planet out of the most recent ice age was only of the order of 4 to 5oC. Carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere are already higher than at any time during the last 160,000 years.

^If any changes to warmer, drier summer conditions occur, this could stimulate an overall increase in tourism in the UK. However, any significant increase in rainfall, wind speed or cloud cover could offset some of the general advantages expected from higher temperatures.

.Solar intensity variations are considered to have been influential in triggering the Little Ice Age,[15] and for some of the warming observed from 1900 to 1950. The cyclical nature of the sun's energy output is not yet fully understood; it differs from the very slow change that is happening within the sun as it ages and evolves, with some studies pointing toward solar radiation increases from cyclical sunspot activity affecting global warming.^Physical changes within the Sun may alter the intensity or character of the incoming solar energy.

Orbital variations

.Slight variations in Earth's orbit lead to changes in the seasonal distribution of sunlight reaching the Earth's surface and how it is distributed across the globe.^The Geosphere Variations in global climate over hundreds of millions of years are due to changes within the interior of the Earth.

^Orbital Variations On timescales of a millennium and longer, changes in the character of the Earth's orbit around the Sun can significantly affect the seasonal and latitudinal distribution of incoming solar energy.

.There is very little change to the area-averaged annually-averaged sunshine; but there can be strong changes in the geographical and seasonal distribution.^The composition and geographic distribution of unmanaged ecosystems will change as individual species respond to new conditions.

^Orbital Variations On timescales of a millennium and longer, changes in the character of the Earth's orbit around the Sun can significantly affect the seasonal and latitudinal distribution of incoming solar energy.

^Temperature and atmospheric carbon dioxide during last glacial-interglacial cycle The Little Ice Age Tree rings and ice cores have been extensively used to reconstruct climate during the last 1,000 years.

Volcanism

Volcanism is a process of conveying material from the crust and mantle of the Earth to its surface. .Volcanic eruptions, geysers, and hot springs, are examples of volcanic processes which release gases and/or particulates into the atmosphere.^Furthermore, aerosols which form in the lower atmosphere as a result of the same processes that release greenhouse gases can cool the Earth, offsetting some of the warming due to the enhanced greenhouse effect.

.Eruptions large enough to affect climate occur on average several times per century, and cause cooling (by partially blocking the transmission of solar radiation to the Earth's surface) for a period of a few years.^This is called climate forcing (or radiative forcing), and causes a temperature rise at the Earth's surface.

.The eruption of Mount Pinatubo in 1991, the second largest terrestrial eruption of the 20th century[20] (after the 1912 eruption of Novarupta[21]) affected the climate substantially.^Climate Change in the 20th Century 10.

[22].Much larger eruptions, known as large igneous provinces, occur only a few times every hundred million years, but may cause global warming and mass extinctions.^Global warming should, on average, cause the oceans to warm and expand, thus increasing sea level.

Volcanoes are also part of the extended carbon cycle. .Over very long (geological) time periods, they release carbon dioxide from the Earth's crust and mantle, counteracting the uptake by sedimentary rocks and other geological carbon dioxide sinks.^Plants create a very important sink for carbon dioxide.

.According to the US Geological Survey, however, estimates are that human activities generate more than 130 times the amount of carbon dioxide emitted by volcanoes.^When you consider that 1934 was at one time .5 C higher than 1998 and over the years was repressed until they were equal – this is for the US only 2% of… .

^Therefore, any reduction in carbon dioxide emissions will be dependent on 1) using less carbon intensive fuels; 2) improving the production and delivery of energy; and 3) utilising our energy more efficiently.

Ocean variability

.The ocean is a fundamental part of the climate system.^The report, which appears in the January 27 th Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, speaks of irreversible climate change, due in large part to the behavior of the oceans.

^An atmospheric sink is a point or location where the gas is removed from the atmosphere, either by chemical reaction or absorption into other parts of the climate system, including the oceans, ice sheets and land.

.Short-term fluctuations (years to a few decades) such as the El Niño–Southern Oscillation, the Pacific decadal oscillation, the North Atlantic oscillation, and the Arctic oscillation, represent climate variability rather than climate change.^Gases Climate Change Affecting Arctic Species Extinction of Polar Bears, Seals and Caribou Thinning sea ice is projected to shrink by 50 percent by the end of the century, affecting Arctic species such as polar bears, seals and caribou according to the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment.

^Global Climate Change Fact Sheet Series: KS4 & A 102 ACE Information Programme aric The formation of El Niño is linked with the cycling of a Pacific Ocean circulation pattern known as the El Niño Southern Oscillation or ENSO. In a normal year, low atmospheric pressure develops over northern Australia and Indonesia, with an anticyclone or high pressure over the equatorial Pacific.

.On longer time scales, alterations to ocean processes such as thermohaline circulation play a key role in redistributing heat by carrying out a very slow and extremely deep movement of water, and the long-term redistribution of heat in the world's oceans.^Impacts of Changing Ocean Circulation Patterns The oceans store an immense amount of heat energy, and consequently play a crucial role in the regulation of climatic patterns.

^The interesting thing about figure 8 is that many respondents wrote in an additional response mode (”caused by both human activities and natural changes”) which wasn’t in the questionnaire.

Serendipity: What has software engineering got to do with climate change?19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.easterbrook.ca [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

.In some cases the chain of causality of human influence on the climate is direct and unambiguous (for example, the effects of irrigation on local humidity), while in other instances it is less clear.^Lots of local effects on regional climate.

Serendipity: What has software engineering got to do with climate change?19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.easterbrook.ca [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

^Of all aspects of climate variability, extreme events are likely to have greatest effect on human well-being in the decades to come.

.Presently the scientific consensus on climate change is that human activity is very likely the cause for the rapid increase in global average temperatures over the past several decades.^Causes of Climate Change 03.

[25].Consequently, the debate has largely shifted onto ways to reduce further human impact and to find ways to adapt to change that has already occurred.^The Chesapeake Bay region is already experiencing climate changes that stress human development and natural habitats alike.

.Of most concern in these anthropogenic factors is the increase in CO2 levels due to emissions from fossil fuel combustion, followed by aerosols (particulate matter in the atmosphere) and cement manufacture.^Anthropogenic or manmade sources of CO2 include fossil fuel combustion, land use changes (primarily deforestation), biomass burning and the manufacture of cement.

^Emissions of CO 2 were highest from peat incubated in the localized permafrost feature, suggesting that slow organic matter accumulation rates are due, at least in part, to rapid decomposition in surface permafrost peat.

.Other factors, including land use, ozone depletion, animal agriculture[27] and deforestation, are also of concern in the roles they play - both separately and in conjunction with other factors - in affecting climate, microclimate, and measures of climate variables.^She presented some evaluations of the success of these workshop, including a climate literacy test they have developed.

Serendipity: What has software engineering got to do with climate change?19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.easterbrook.ca [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

^The loss of organic matter due to changing climate would affect the stability of soil structure, ecological habitats nationally, and agricultural use in southern England.

.Reasonably complete global records of surface temperature are available beginning from the mid-late 1800s.^Surface Temperatures Variations Combined land and ocean temperatures analyses indicate that during the last decade globally averaged surface temperatures have been higher than in any decade in the past 140 years.

^Gases Climate Change Affecting Arctic Species Extinction of Polar Bears, Seals and Caribou Thinning sea ice is projected to shrink by 50 percent by the end of the century, affecting Arctic species such as polar bears, seals and caribou according to the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment.

.Climate change effects have been linked to the collapse of various civilisations.^By now, we have a fairly good understanding of the effects of global warming and climate change, but what caused it all?

Glaciers

Variations in CO2, temperature and dust from the Vostok ice core over the last 450,000 years

.Glaciers are considered among the most sensitive indicators of climate change,[31] advancing when climate cools (for example, during the period known as the Little Ice Age) and retreating when climate warms.^Climate Change/Global warming .

^Although Global Climate Change Fact Sheet Series: KS4 & A 40 ACE Information Programme aric many regions of the world experienced cooling during the period 1450 to 1890 A.D., its use has been criticised because it could not conclusively be considered an event of global significance There is considerable evidence that the Little Ice Age consisted of two main cold stages of about a century's length.

.Glaciers grow and shrink, both contributing to natural variability and amplifying externally forced changes.^A growing recognition of the importance of their contributions represents a major culture change in the climate modeling community over the last decade.

Serendipity: What has software engineering got to do with climate change?19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.easterbrook.ca [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

^External forcing operates from outside the Earth's climate system, and includes changes in the global energy balance due to variations in the Earth’s orbit around the Sun, and changes in the amount of energy coming from the Sun.

A world glacier inventory has been compiled since the 1970s. .Initially based mainly on aerial photographs and maps, this compilation has resulted in a detailed inventory of more than 100,000 glaciers covering a total area of approximately 240,000 km2 and, in preliminary estimates, for the recording of the remaining ice cover estimated to be around 445,000 km2.^So far the oldest ice core record is 800,000 years, although we only have one record this old.

Serendipity: What has software engineering got to do with climate change?19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.easterbrook.ca [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

^Drylands cover over 40% of the total land area of the world (6,150 million hectares).

Serendipity: What has software engineering got to do with climate change?19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.easterbrook.ca [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

.The World Glacier Monitoring Service collects data annually on glacier retreat and glacier mass balance From this data, glaciers worldwide have been found to be shrinking significantly, with strong glacier retreats in the 1940s, stable or growing conditions during the 1920s and 1970s, and again retreating from the mid 1980s to present.^During the last period of glacial retreat, sustained, globally-averaged warming of a few degrees occurred over thousands of years.

.The most significant climate processes since the middle to late Pliocene (approximately 3 million years ago) are the glacial and interglacial cycles.^Temperature and atmospheric carbon dioxide during last glacial-interglacial cycle The Little Ice Age Tree rings and ice cores have been extensively used to reconstruct climate during the last 1,000 years.

^Gases Climate Change Affecting Arctic Species Extinction of Polar Bears, Seals and Caribou Thinning sea ice is projected to shrink by 50 percent by the end of the century, affecting Arctic species such as polar bears, seals and caribou according to the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment.

.Glaciers leave behind moraines that contain a wealth of material - including organic matter that may be accurately dated - recording the periods in which a glacier advanced and retreated.^The process deals only with biodegradable matter; plastic, metal, glass and all other non-organic materials have to be separated from the organic matter before treatment.

.Similarly, by tephrochronological techniques, the lack of glacier cover can be identified by the presence of soil or volcanic tephra horizons whose date of deposit may also be precisely ascertained.^Loss of plant cover may reinforce these trends, and soil depth may be altered in many places (Botkin et al , 1991).

Vegetation

.A change in the type, distribution and coverage of vegetation may occur given a change in the climate; this much is obvious.^This may involve gradual evolution if the change is slow enough, or shifting habitats if it occurs quickly.

.In any given scenario, a mild change in climate may result in increased precipitation and warmth, resulting in improved plant growth and the subsequent sequestration of airborne CO2.^The resulting decrease in local atmospheric humidity and increase in surface albedo (reflectivity of sunlight) has the potential to further reduce the regional precipitation.

^To assess whether the two are associated requires the use of computer model simulations of the likely climatic effects of the changing atmospheric composition, and the comparison of the results with observations.

.Larger, faster or more radical changes, however, may well result in vegetation stress, rapid plant loss and desertification in certain circumstances.^The change in energy receipt can amount to 10% or more in certain locations.

Ice cores

.Analysis of ice in a core drilled from a ice sheet such as the Antarctic ice sheet, can be used to show a link between temperature and global sea level variations.^Points on the thermometer can then be used to show impacts at that level of global warming.

Serendipity: What has software engineering got to do with climate change?19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.easterbrook.ca [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

^Temperature and atmospheric carbon dioxide during last glacial-interglacial cycle The Little Ice Age Tree rings and ice cores have been extensively used to reconstruct climate during the last 1,000 years.

.The air trapped in bubbles in the ice can also reveal the CO2 variations of the atmosphere from the distant past, well before modern environmental influences.^These involve the analysis of: a) the (isotopic) composition of the water in the ice; b) dissolved and particulate matter in the ice; and c) the physical characteristics of the firn and ice, and of air bubbles trapped in the ice.

.The study of these ice cores has been a significant indicator of the changes in CO2 over many millennia, and continues to provide valuable information about the differences between ancient and modern atmospheric conditions.^By contrast, the nature and abundance of terrigenous materials provides information about continental humidity-aridity variations, and the intensities and directions of winds.

^Whenever tree growth is limited directly or indirectly by some climate variable, usually temperature or rainfall, and that limitation can be quantified and dated, dendroclimatology can be used to reconstruct some information about past environmental conditions.

.Wide and thick rings indicate a fertile, well-watered growing period, whilst thin, narrow rings indicate a time of lower rainfall and less-than-ideal growing conditions.^These pests have less difficulty in migrating with their climatic zones than vegetation and may damage tree species with lower immunity.

^He also argued that less than twenty years from the first IPCC report, the science is well-developed and accepted by the majority of non-scientists.

Serendipity: What has software engineering got to do with climate change?19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.easterbrook.ca [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

Pollen analysis

Palynology is the study of contemporary and fossil palynomorphs, including pollen. .Palynology is used to infer the geographical distribution of plant species, which vary under different climate conditions.^The composition and geographic distribution of unmanaged ecosystems will change as individual species respond to new conditions.

.Different groups of plants have pollen with distinctive shapes and surface textures, and since the outer surface of pollen is composed of a very resilient material, they resist decay.^They are formed by the reaction of gases in the atmosphere, or by the dispersal of material at the surface.

.Changes in the type of pollen found in different sedimentation levels in lakes, bogs or river deltas indicate changes in plant communities; which are dependent on climate conditions.^Impacts of Future Climate Change in Africa How Africa responds to future climate change will depend upon the sensitivities of her ecosystems, natural resources and national economies.

Insects

Remains of beetles are common in freshwater and land sediments. .Different species of beetles tend to be found under different climatic conditions.^A reduction in the frequency, severity and duration of winter freeze would be likely under conditions associated with climate change and could be beneficial.

.Given the extensive lineage of beetles whose genetic makeup has not altered significantly over the millennia, knowledge of the present climatic range of the different species, and the age of the sediments in which remains are found, past climatic conditions may be inferred.^A change in global climate would be accompanied by shifts in climatic zones, thereby altering the suitability of a region for the growth of distinctive species.

Sea level change

.Global sea level change for much of the last century has generally been estimated using tide gauge measurements collated over long periods of time to give a long-term average.^Central Intelligence Agency Major U.S. Climate Change Science Program Report Issued The report gives us a new and long term world wide reference point for stabilizing greenhouse gases and to also get a comprehensive evaluation of just how the plans are developed and used.

^In the long-term the concept of sustainable development (development today which does not compromise the needs of future generations) will have to be implemented if the Climate Convention's ultimate objective of avoiding dangerous man-made interference with the global climate is to be achieved.

^Whilst scientists believe this to reflect mostly regional changes in climate, the recent disintegration of the Larsen Ice Shelf has renewed speculation that climatic changes in the high latitudes have the potential to cause severe impacts via a rise in global sea level over the next 100 to 200 years.

^Habitats The Global Warming Issue: The National Association of Evangelicals Adopt a Do-Nothing Policy The National Association of Evangelicals, like so many other Global warming skeptics, accept misrepresented and fraudulent summaries of the original Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports and of the IPCC's "Summary for Policymakers."

.Changing the atmosphere: expert knowledge and environmental governance.^Climate change crops up a lot, most notably in the sessions on atmospheric sciences and global environmental change, but also in sessions on the cryosphere, ocean sciences, biogeosciences, paleoclimatology, and hydrology.

Serendipity: What has software engineering got to do with climate change?19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.easterbrook.ca [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

.Plows, plagues, and petroleum: how humans took control of climate.^Climate Control Climate Change News You Might Have Missed Recent discoveries and warnings about how climate change might affect people and the planet.

Participants

.If you would like to get involved in this project please
introduce yourself in this section.^Climatologist Lonnie Thompson explains, " Global warming is not as controversial as some people would like you to think.

I realise that my actions alone will not have much of an
effect. .I've joined this project because I think this will be much
more effective if I do it as part of a group.^Reducing deforestation is a much more effective way for countries to reduce climate change while also meeting their obligations to protect biodiversity.'"

^If we're to have confidence in a prediction of the weather based on climate change at any time in the next century, it will have to be because we have much more confidence in our models than we now have.

^She presented some evaluations of the success of these workshop, including a climate literacy test they have developed.

Serendipity: What has software engineering got to do with climate change?19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.easterbrook.ca [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

^Presenting the basic science and predictions of temperature change are irrelevant to most people – its the impacts that matter (His key quote: “It’s the impacts, stupid!”).

Serendipity: What has software engineering got to do with climate change?19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.easterbrook.ca [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

.As I have a scientific background I would
like to get a much clearer grasp of the science.^If it had been, it’s likely that more people would have selected this response, and it’s arguably the most accurate scientifically, if you take a broad view of earth system processes: .

Serendipity: What has software engineering got to do with climate change?19 January 2010 9:54 UTCwww.easterbrook.ca [Source type: FILTERED WITH BAYES]

.However what I
want to spend most of my time on is finding out what effective
actions can be taken to avoid climate change and how these can be
implemented.^Time.com: Climate Change in Action in Greenland .

^Climate Dangerous Climate Change is Only 1 Degree Celsius Away Human-made greenhouse gases are starting to take it's toll as the Earth's climate is starting to reach a dangerous level that is already beginning to set off consequences.

Processes used in this
project

.This section will contain details of the various processes or
methods used in this project in producing the stated outcomes.^Anaerobic Digestion is an additional method that creates energy from waste without the use of a combustion process.

.At
the moment this is just a random list of some possible approaches.^Some of us just think that with the possible reprucutions of GLOBAL TREATIES and TAXES and the possible justification (for those who would use it) for MASS GOVERNMENT CONTROL .

Participation and
ownership

The nature of wikis encourages joint ownership of all the
participants. The experience of other wiki projects can be used as
a guide to encouraging participation.

Learning
methods

Webquests

.A webquest is an enquiry based learning activity were
participants use the Internet to locate the resources they need to
resolve the problem posed by the webquest.^To eliminate the problem altogether, and achieve a sustainable energy future, we need to use renewable sources of energy, like the wind, the sun, rivers, and oceans.

Reflective
diary

.This project encourages people to take a personal approach to
the subject of climate change.^Even if future climate change is less severe than projected, serious impacts are expected, according to the study.

Peoples feelings and emotions play a
key part in any learning. .One approach to paying attention to your
feelings is to keep a reflective learning diary.^There’s an awful lot for us to learn if we start paying more and better attention.

.In this you can
record your immediate feelings about some aspect of your learning.^In any case, if everyone agrees about some aspect of consensus science - that is, the concept is universally accepted - then that part of the science is effectively dead .

.Later you can reflect on these feelings and see how they effected
your learning.^These hollywood liberals need to learn that nobody cares what they think, and playing a role in a movie does not make you an expert, on anything, frequently not even on being a good actor.

.If you wanted to share your reflective learning
diary you could set up a page on your Wikiversity home page and add
entries there.^My best bet is if you want something to buy and grab ahold of pick up the Bible that will get you alot farther than what they want you to think and believe.

^You’ve been told your carbon footprint could lead to skyrocketing temperatures, melting ice caps, dying polar bears and “superstorms.” But there is another side to the story, and you can see it on KUSI this Thursday night.

.Alternatively you could setup a reflective learning
blog and which can be either private or public.^Ideas to reduce CO2 emissions from private transport •= As an alternative to driving the car, walk, cycle or use public transport where it is suitable and safe for you to do so, particularly for short trips where using the car is not really necessary and an alternative exists.

.Please only add items to this list that you
feel are essential to understanding climate change.^By now, we have a fairly good understanding of the effects of global warming and climate change, but what caused it all?

Introduction to the
science

Short
courses

Global warming is a series
of videos lectures by David Archer covering a 10-week course for
non-science majors focuses on a single problem: assessing the risk
of human-caused climate change.

Wikiversity
projects

These are a list of existing projects on Wikiversity that relate
to this project. .If you find any other projects please add them.^Those of you who send me news stories please add justin@iloveco2.org to your list.

Although this book is still in a very preliminary state, we seem
to be moving toward a cohesive structure. .The book is really two
parts: first, a primer on the science of climate change, and
second, a study of societal implications of climate change.^First, he denied that global climate change is really taking place.

.The
first part deals with much more concrete, physically based
principles.^If we're to have confidence in a prediction of the weather based on climate change at any time in the next century, it will have to be because we have much more confidence in our models than we now have.

As such, it can be developed more easily. .The second
part is potentially more controversial, but not necessarily so; for
the early stages of development, the second part should probably be
limited to generalities and external links.^This is of particular importance in the construction industry, where an effective risk management strategy should form part of any development proposal prior to construction.

Climate change means the variation in the Earth's global climate or in regional climates over time.

It describes changes in the state of the atmosphere over time scales ranging from decades to millions of years. These changes can be caused by processes inside the Earth, forces from outside (e.g. variations in sunlight intensity) or, more recently, human activities.

Climate change is any significant long-term change in the expected patterns of average weather of a region (or the whole Earth) over a significant period of time. Climate change is about non-normal variations to the climate, and the effects of these variations on other parts of the Earth. Examples include melting of the ice caps at the South Pole and North Pole. These changes may take tens, hundreds or perhaps millions of years.

In recent usage, especially in the context of environmental policy, climate change usually refers to changes in modern climate (see global warming). For information on temperature measurements over various periods, and the data sources available, see temperature record. For attribution of climate change over the past century, see attribution of recent climate change.